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Campeche is a beautiful colonial city found in the Yucatan Peninsula. Its history is rich with tales of pirate invasions. Around the city center, the cobblestone streets are lined with sidewalks that rise to the store fronts. In some places the sidewalks are so high above the street that steps have been added. The concrete buildings are seemly connected, creating a winding strip mall effect. Only brightly colored paint distinguishes one store front from the next.

I’m not sure if it’s typical for dancers to be clumsy, but I am! In order to manage my way around this city, I had to look where I was walking, so I wouldn’t trip. Funny enough, that’s how I discovered the Escuela Superior de Danza. Outside of the dance school’s entrance someone had carefully and clearly wrote “BALLET” in the cement. I immediately stopped, looked up, and saw the typical iron- lined window had been molded into the form of a ballerina. Peering through the open door, I saw girls of all ages dressed in their class’s colored leotards, pink tights, and identical hairband that matched their leotard. Excited and nervous, I stepped inside the studio’s lobby.

After a night’s stay on Isla Mujeres, a small island across from Cancun, my dance and world journey began. In the mid-afternoon, my husband and I boarded a very frigid ADO bus for a four hour ride to the city of Merida. Our plan was to visit the famous Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza and to stay in Merida, since it was recommended for its beauty.

It was Sunday when we arrived in Merida and just in time for dinner. I couldn’t wait to get off the bus, find a hotel, and sleep off my raging migraine. The only thing that stopped me from going to bed was my stomach yearning for food. We quickly dropped off our backpacks and set out to find something to eat.

My travels have just begun, and I can’t tell you how extremely nervous I was that I might not find dance anywhere. I can’t tell you how many articles I’ve read about how dance is dying; even with televised success of shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” and “Dancing WithThe Stars.” What if dance was dying and all we had as human culture was football and soccer?!

One night after dinner my housemates at the B&B couldn’t stop talkingabout this dancer. For the past three weeks, each of them had seen this blonde woman dancing around Antigua. They joked that she never walked, but danced from place to place. They speculated about where she was from and why she was dancing. It was then they named her “The Dancer of Antigua.” Secretly I was jealous, How could I have missed her? This would be perfect for my project! I only had two more days in Antigua: tomorrow, which I had already scheduled a cooking class and the night after returning from Lake Atitlan, which only left a few hours to possible find her. I started to give up all hope.

I hope you’re all enjoying the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. With all the holiday excitement, I’m thrilled to announce some changes to Ballet For Me And You. In the new year, I will be doing a complete overhaul of the website to better organize and stay true to my mission of simplifying ballet for young students and parents.

Don’t worry, I haven’t forgot about all of you advanced dancers. Starting in January, I will launch a new website just for you! It’s a sister site to Ballet For Me And You called Offbeat Ballerina. This new site is a place to learn more aboutdance, share your creative projects, chat, and spread your love of dance with me.

With all these upcoming changes, I’m so grateful for your love, support, and understanding. I hope you all have a happy holiday and super fabulous new year! If you have any feedback or suggestions as I begin this revamping process, please let me know.